The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1887-05-19
DIGGING FOR LIBERTY.
Experience of q Confederate PRISONER In
Camp Douglas in 1854.

GOmEZ0GEAr0
Camp Douglas In 1884.
"
1made my entry into Camp Douglas
near Chicago, the Sd day of January,
1864, says "Ex-RebeT in the Detroit
Free Press, and / may be pardoned for
the remark that it was a cold day for
me in more senses than one. Two
weeks previous to my debut in Chi
cago society / was in Arkansas, uni
formed in the hap-hazard fashion of
the Confederates of that period, and
when l came to be railroaded up
North and found the thermometer
down to nine degrees below zero, I
could hardly hold my teeth in my
head. There were about five thousand
prisoners in the stockade, which was
simply board fence twelve feet high,
and they were provided with rough
shanties and stoves. A Northern man
would have kept comfortably warm
In the quarters, but it was hard work
for the prisoners to keep fingers and
toes away from Jack Frost Indeed,
there were many cases of actual suf-
fering, though the Federal Govern
ment made the best arrangements
possible. The trouble was at the
camp instead of at Washington.
After q certain hour of the evening
all lights must be out and everybody
in bed, and when the stoves grew cold
the frost and wind drove into the
shanties at hundred points.
There were only six of us in the
shanty to which was assigned, while
some held eight, ten. and twelve. We
were within several feet of the fence,
and as we were all men from one regi-
ment, and all captured at the same
time, we felt that we could trust each
other. The idea of an escape was
broached in February, but it was the
10Th of April when the first real move
was made. The only show was to
tunnel under the fence and come out
by night. There was guard sta
toned on elevated platforms about
the inclosure by day, and at night
chain of sentinels walked regular
beats outside the fence. We calcu-
lated ON a tunnel not less than thirty
feet long, and it was begun by taking
up some Of the flooring in the back
end of our shanty. Visits of inspec-
ton were had twice a week, but there
was not a day in which some official
was not liable to come poking
around.
The floor of our shsnty rested on
sleepers clear of the ground. We
could therefore stow away a great
deal of the dirt under the floor. We
worked only at night, and that in
reliefs of two. We first went down
four feet, and then started off on q
straight line for the fence and beyond.
We were almost to the fence before
we had to carry any dirt out doors.
We managed to scatter quantity
around our house without exciting
suspicion, and the rest had to be ac-
cumulated during the night and car
ried out in our pockets. 1t was slow
work when we reached that point,
and on two or three different occa-
sions We came very near being ex-
posed by officials dropping in on us.
There were several rainy days about
the time we were under the fence. and
for week our tunnel was full of
water. When that soaked away we
wentfat our work again, and ON the
morning of the 14th of May the last
man to crawfish out of the hole re-
yond the sentinels' beat, and ready for
If we had had the making of the
weather we could not have planned
for better night. 1t was dark and
misty, with every chance in our favor.
During the Afternoon we drew lots to
see who should go first, and it fell to
me. We had nothing to pack up, and
the whole six of us had only eighty
cents in money between us. 1t was
planned that we should separate as
soon as clear of the hole, and each
was to take care of himself as best
he could. That was a long after
noon, l can tell you, and even when
it wore away and night came, we had
to wait many hours yet. Some were
for going at IL and others at o'clock,
but we finally moved at 11:15. We
fastened the door of the shanty and
crept into the tunnel one after
another, and was soon at the far end
of it and digging upward. was
hard at work when / felt the ground
break through behind me, some one
uttered a yell, and then came the
cry:
Corporal of the Guard! Post
No. 1872
This was repeated several times and
pretty soon the corporal and file of
men from the relief arrived. The
sentinel on the beat, who was big,
heavy man, had broken through into
our tunnel, and in the fall, had broken
his leg. While l was held prisoner in
the hole the others crawled back,
knowing that the jig was up. 1t did
not take the corporal many minutes
to discover the true state of affairs,
and then l was hauled out by the neck
and made the butt of ridicule. When
escorted back to the shanty the five
men were found fast asleep" but
were turned out and sent to the guard
house to keep me company. We We're
reduced to half rations for thirty
days. but no further punishment was
meted cut to us.